August 24, 2009

The Woodstock Festival: “Three Days of Peace and Music”

By

Stephanie Fuller

For

Ms. O’Connell

Music Appreciation 101

Faulkner State
 The Woodstock Festival: “Three Days of Peace and Music”

The Woodstock Music and Art Fair was held on August 15-18, 1969.

It was organized by four young men: John Roberts, Joel Rosenman, Artie

Kornfeld, and Mike Lang. The four originally set out to create a recording studio for the

musicians who lived in and around Woodstock, but the idea eventually evolved into a

two day rock concert. They promoted it as “Three Days of Peace and Music.” The

Beatles, Bob Dylan, and The Rolling Stones all declined to participate.

They encountered many problems along the way, one of which was location. As it

turns out, the Woodstock Festival did not take place in Woodstock, New York, but in a

little town called Bethel.

The original location was a town called, Wallkill. The people who lived in

Wallkill, however, did not want a bunch of “drugged-out hippies” in their city, and filed

numerous lawsuits. On July 2, 1969, a law was passed to ban the concert from their city.

The four men panicked, because they didn’t know if another location could be

found in time. Luckily, in mid July, Max Yasgur offered his 600 acre dairy farm.

As the date neared more problems arose. They originally only estimated 50,000

people to show, but two days before the festival even began, 50,000 had already started

camping by the stage. They raised their estimate to 200,000. They soon realized there
wasn’t enough time to erect enough gates to keep people from walking in without paying.

So it had to be a free concert.

When the word got out that it was free, even more people decided to go, causing

one of America’s worst traffic jams. Police turned away thousands of cars, but still an

estimated half-million made it to the festival. The traffic was so bad that, most artists had

to take a helicopter to get to the stage.

To make matters worse, there was not enough food; people had to wait in line

thirty minutes for water, and at least an hour to use a toilet. Drugs, sex and nudity, and

mud were also big a part of Woodstock.

Woodstock had thirty-two performers. Some of the biggest acts were: Joan Baez,

Sly and the Family Stone, The Who, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, Joe

Cocker, Crosby Stills Nash and Young, Jimi Hendrix, Santana, and Creedence

Clearwater Revival.

If it wasn’t for Woodstock, we probably wouldn’t have the great festivals we have

today, such as: Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Warped Tour, and many

more.

Even through the food and water shortages, lack of sanitation, and consistent rain,

500,000 people, for three days, lived together peacefully. Woodstock has been considered

by many as “the freest moment in American history.” Joel Rosenman once stated,

"Woodstock is a reminder that inside each of us is the instinct for building a decent,

loving community, the kind we all wish for.” Rosenman also said, “Over the decades, the

history of that weekend has served as a beacon of hope that a beautiful spirit in each of us

ultimately will triumph.”

 Works Cited

“Baby Boomers and 'Their' 1960s Woodstock Culture." U.S. News &
World Report Online (August 18, 2009): NA. General OneFile. Gale. Alabama
Virtual Library Remote Access. 20 Aug. 2009

Jason Laure. "Memory of a Free Festival." World & I Aug. 1999: 232-239. SIRS
Renaissance. Web. 20 August, 2009.

Andrew Kohut and Larry Hugick. "Woodstock: 20 Years Later, Era Gets Mixed
Reviews." Richmond Times-Dispatch (Richmond, VA) Aug. 13, 1989: K-1+. SIRS
Researcher. Web. 20 August, 2009.

"Woodstock still rocks the memory bank: Locals recall feelings related to
iconic '60s concert." Jacksonville Journal-Courier (Jacksonville, IL) (August 17,
2009): NA. General OneFile. Gale. Alabama Virtual Library Remote Access. 20
Aug. 2009